By Fernando Kallas
GELSENKIRCHEN, Germany (Reuters) – Georgia arrived in Germany to play their first major international soccer tournament as the team of Napoli star winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia under the tutelage of coach and former France hero Willy Sagnol.
Wednesday’s statement 2-0 win over Portugal that secured a stunning qualification for the European Championship round of 16 proved that Georgia, as a whole team, should be taken seriously.
No longer were they the naive and fragile side who won only two of their eight games in the Euro qualifiers, conceding 18 goals to finish fourth in the group and having to dig deep to beat Greece on penalties after a goalless draw in the consolation round.
Their grit and passion gave them victory over Portugal, ranked 68 places above them in the world, and Georges Mikautadze’s second-half penalty was his third goal, making him the leading scorer of the tournament so far.
Georgia lost on their debut on the big stage but won the hearts of soccer fans with a never-say-die display in a 3-1 defeat to Turkey that could easily have finished in a draw for the underdogs.
After taking their first point in the tournament, holding Czech Republic to a 1-1 draw, Georgia finally exploded against Portugal in another display of discipline and character that has made them one of the uplifting stories of the championship.
Portugal’s second-string side, still led by Cristiano Ronaldo who never takes a day off, were never able to get a foothold against a Georgia team who seemed to enter every challenge as if it was their last.
There is little secret about their approach: a disciplined deep back five which offers little space and explosive counter-attacks from long balls that target Kvaratskhelia and Mikautadze.
Mikautadze has participated in all four of Georgia’s goals, setting up Kvaratskhelia — dubbed Kvaradona by fans back in Naples where Diego Maradona was king — in the second minute on Wednesday.
Georgia, whose sporting prowess on the international stage has largely been on the rugby field, now have another reason to make their fans proud.
Their next test on Sunday, however, will be their toughest yet as they face Spain who not only have been the all-round best team at Euro 2024 so far but also thrashed Georgia 7-1 in Tbilisi in the Euro qualifiers last year.
It could be too much firepower for them to handle but Georgia will certainly not go down without a fight.
(Reporting by Fernando Kallas; editing by Clare Fallon)
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